In anticipation of Heroes Reborn, I decided to start re-watching Heroes on Netflix (I’m almost finished with season 2). Seeing the two versions of the show side by side didn’t do the new one any favors.
The main reason the first couple seasons of Heroes worked so well is because it gave us characters we could care about or at least find really interesting: Peter, Claire, Noah, Matt, Mohinder, Isaac, Ando, Nathan, Angela, Niki, and even Sylar. They also had a clear (and entertaining purpose) to save the cheerleader and save the world.
Heroes Reborn has a purpose, but is it nearly as interesting? No. The show begins with Noah Bennet in Odessa, Texas looking to reconcile with his daughter Claire. A huge summit of Evos (the evolved people) and humans gather for peace when a huge explosion hits and tons of people die. Bennet survives somehow and soon it is a year later. Evos are in hiding or on the run, Mohinder has taken credit for the explosion (which we all know isn’t true), and Bennet is living as a car salesman engaged to be married.
Soon, he gets caught up in the conspiracy, believing that Claire died in the explosion. Turns out he had his own mind erased by his friend Rene, the Haitian, but why? The only one that can help is Molly Walker, all grown up now. With the help of a conspiracy nut in search of his sister, the man with the horn-rimmed glasses sets out to find Molly (turns out other people are after her too). Something is coming and only the heroes, the Evos, can save everyone.
This particular plot point (with a familiar character mind you) was the most promising part of the rebooted show and I do want to see how it plays out. When it came to introducing new characters we are supposed to care about, on the other hand, I feel like the show fell on its face. I even had to look on IMDB to remember even one of their names.
The most promising new character award goes to Robbie Kay’s Tommy. He’s a teenage boy always on the run. He has the ability to transport people to wherever he’s thinking. At one point, Tommy gets into a bit of trouble when two vigilantes (one played by Chuck’s Zachary Levi) come after him. They are killing Evos because their son died in the Odessa explosion. Tommy’s secret also comes out in the open with the girl he likes and the girl’s boyfriend.
Hopefully, Zachary Levi’s character will begin to be way more compelling as time goes on. One thing is for certain, though, I absolutely couldn’t stand the woman playing his wife. She needs to go asap…
The most convoluted award goes to the Japanese plot with Miko and Ren. Ren, a gamer, shows up at Miko’s door convinced she is the inspiration for a video game character (I’m totally being serious here). He tells her that the sword has the power to save her father. She touches the sword and suddenly she becomes a video game character (animated and everything) with warrior like powers. Somehow, this leads her to Hiro’s company, so we’ll see where that goes. Honestly, this whole thing makes no sense to me and doesn’t bode well for the female characters of the show. So far, out of the new female characters, we have a love interest for a teenage boy and a video game fantasy…
The most uninteresting and downright boring award goes to Carlos, a war hero (or so everyone says). When he discovers his brother was a masked hero saving people in the city, and after his brother dies in his arms, it is up to Carlos to keep his brother’s Underground Railroad (to save people with powers) up and running. This plot was so dull, it made season 2’s Maya look amazing.
Aside from Noah Bennet, the return of some of our original heroes (as seen in the promo trailer) was a major tease. While we see glimpses of Mohinder, there has been no Matt, no Angela, no Micah, and no Hiro. I hope their return doesn’t get teased throughout the whole season because they would be the main reason I tune in at all at this point.
Another weakness is that we still have no clue what happened to any of the characters. Where’s Peter Petrelli for instance? There’s also no humor at all, which doesn’t help propel the show forward with only characters I could care less about to keep one’s attention.
Putting all my critiques aside, Heroes Reborn still has the potential to get better (though it will never reach season 1 greats as the writing team is rather different – including no Brian Fuller on board). Perhaps when some of the old favorites show up more in the mix, the show will pick up speed. Perhaps when Heroes Reborn delves more into other new (and hopefully immensely more interesting characters), they will have created some new characters to actually care about. I’m still crossing my fingers as a couple characters haven’t really been introduced yet.
Overall, I admit that I’m still going to tune in because I want to see how this experiment plays out.
What did you think of Heroes Reborn? Did you love it or were you as disappointed as me? Sound off in the comments…
Photos: NBC
Overall Rating
“Mrs. Robinson, you’re trying to seduce
me. Aren’t you?”
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